Jim and Ariel's Journey
by FictionNewb
Summary: Jim is going downhill ever since he descended off of the ship RLS Legacy, the Benbow Inn being reconstructed and Doc having his own little family and departing from Silver. So what'd going for him now? Meeting a strange creature that lives under the water. Ariel, becoming depressed after discovering more about her mother, wants a new beginning from her boring life, with 6 sisters.
1. Chapter 1

Today was not a good day; the rain came down heavy at my mother's new Benbow Inn, Mrs. Dunwoody blabbering on about her damn purp juice.

And here I was, in the kitchen thinking if I should've stayed with Silver. To be a runaway and live life the way I could've. Collecting treasure from places and be a...A pirate.

Could that have been a better life for me?

"Jim!" Here she goes again, my mother, Sarah Hawkins. Screaming my name, I had a hunch...It was because I wasn't at my new job. "You haven't missed work, have you?" She tentatively cradled her locket around her neck, her big blue eyes searching mine as I sat here, crumpled by the kitchen double doors.

She looked tired, today. Her hair came from her ponytail and frayed down the side of her head, her lips were cracked and bags were forming under her eyes.

No. I couldn't have left my mother to do this by herself. Well, she gets help of Doc, but he has a family now with three baby girls and boy with Captain Amelia, well Amelia now, since she's put of ship work for awhile now.

Then there was B.E.N and Morph slithering by his side.

"Hello, Jimmy!" He said with such enthusiasm. His arms balanced 3 plates on each arm. He smelt like stale brass, since he is a robot, her pixel blue eyes configuring his emotions. And Morph carrying a plate, his little eyes on me with his mouth hanging open and tongue flickering as he panted. "Why are you here? Haven't you got a job to be working?" Even with his mind back from a few months ago, he was still the old B.E.N we all know.

"No," I stood up from my slouch and squared off my mother.

"Jim." She exclaimed, not knowing where to put her arms and quietly took two plates of B.E.N and exited silently.

I sighed; the heat from the kitchen was too much for me.

I left the Inn and made my way down to the Cliffside. Rain hit me like pebbles; it was so much harder today. It was going to rain like this for a few more days, as predicted.

The rain soaked my big black jacket loose around my arms and big black boots shiny from the clean they're getting.

"Agh!" I threw a smooth pebble into the crashing waves. They were big and black, also. Thundering towards me and colliding with the walls. I dropped onto a nearby bench, squinting at the skies to see lightening flash and ships come in to the Benbow Inn.

I covered my face in my hands, angry I can't do anything right.

Then something caught my eye in the water, green and scaly, swimming almost, and then the sight of flesh and locks of blood red hair.

I stood bewildered, my fringe flicking into my eyes and breathing suddenly ragged.

There, in the storm, a girl was swimming, her red hair flowing behind her. But she had a fish tail for her waist down! I rubbed my eyes, the sound of thunder clattering my ears, and when I looked back down into the black water it was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

I drifted among the waves, little fish friends gliding through my hair, and so coincidently, Sebastian was with one of them.

"Ariel!" Sebastian shrieked and began to follow me into Atlantica city. The glorious shiny metal poles constructed into this magnificent underwater village.

But I just sighed, swimming up the halls, with Sebastian tailing behind me.

"Ariel, your father is very worried-"He began, but I stopped short, my red locks flowing into my vision.

"If he's so worried," I faced him, fingering my hair out the way which just floated from behind my ear. "He should come and follow me and tell me himself! If father were so concerned, Sebastian, he would get off his throne and be by side!" I was flustered, the cool waters were coming in, but I felt warm.

I swam away, my eyes tight shut and lips about to meld together.

I couldn't get into my room quick enough, as I glided near my sisters beds; I peered out the window and stared up. So high, it was so high. The sun was glittering on the surface, oh how I could just grasp it.

I sat on the ledge, fingering my mother's blue shell music box with gold lining, and I opened it to life. There my father and mother crystallized in gold mini figures and the melody sang.

_Da da da, da da, da da da. _

I sighed, the melody bringing me to tears, and the tears just seeped with the water around me.

"Ariel?" Attina drifted into the room, her large green eyes flickering over to me, and landing sadly onto mother's music box. "Ariel, what's wrong?" She was always like the mother figure to me and the girls after mother died. She was always there to kiss our wounds and hush our bad dreams.

She had her brown hair up, even wispy bits managed to escape, and her lips a soft pink and crown just like father's was as ready as ever to be put to the test of her responsibility of the undersea kingdom

"I'm just so sick." I whined, wrapping my arms around my silky scaled tail, pondering on what my life has come too. "I wanna go-"

"Don't start with that nonsense, again, Ariel." Attina began to drift out of the room, past the beds and stopped to look over her shoulder at me. "I won't speak of it, just let this phase go." She said coldly, and that pushed me over the edge as I gritted my teeth to contain a scream.

Once she was gone, I quickly flew from my window and used all the strength in my tail to power boost me to the surface. My muscles ached, like they were being twisted in all different kinds of angles, but as I neared the surface, it was dotting, the waves becoming very large and mad, sloshing my body back and forth with the strong current, the cold and bitter cold of the water was worrying as I tried to breathe but couldn't.

Then I did it. I broke the surface, my lungs filled with golden air. Gusts of invisible forces making my skin ice cold, and hair part unevenly it was irritating. But I was also being hit by something else, it was picking at my skin, it was just like water.

It hit my skin, and I was puzzled, is this rain? Of what my father calls it? How the skies pour water, for the lands above and for us undersea.

But what I believed was the sun wasn't that at all. It was a large contraption I hadn't seen before. It was mechanical, it made groaning sounds and it had a tail as well. It was flat and had bones, and it was flapping, causing me to fight against the current. And it was so high in the sky it looked like a huge eye from where I looked up at it, mesmerized by the floating metal heap.

Then I saw something move in the corner of my eye. I turned quick, hair falling in my eyes to see a young boy with bulky black slugs on him, but he was covering his eyes, as if there was something in them.

I had to get away; I couldn't let someone, and anyone see me, because I would get so grounded for this.

While he shrouded his eyes, I swam a little more on the surface, the waves crashing down on me one last time, taking me under in a whirl pool of suffocation for a moment's heartbeat. And I was all good and began to throttle under the waves above and straight down, but the kingdom wasn't there. I couldn't see the sparkling castle; I couldn't see mer-folk. I only saw blackness, blackness and bubbles.

"Oh no."


	3. Chapter 3

I sat here for at least a week, just watching the waves, watching the water come at me and slowly disperse. I was searching for something I didn't even know or looked like, like searching for a needle in a haystack.

The winds became stronger and I shivered like mad, curling in on myself on the bench. The clouds were getting darker as the skies, a low rumble of thunder ascending. Is that why that weird creature came to the surface of the sea? I mean, how deep is the sea?

I peered over the edge, just empty blackness, and foam at the sides of the huge wall. The waters were as mad as how I felt.

"Jim?" That light hearted voice sprang through my ears and I seen the glint of spectacles from the corner of my eye.

I dopily lolled my head to the side, to see Doc holding his baby boy, Delbert junior. His frizz of brown hair fluffed at the front, his dark dog skin starting to get a bit of fuzz. He was in a blue Orbit pram, where the leather hood was made of the leathery skin of an Orcus Galacticus. It shielded baby Del, very well, because he didn't make a sound.

"Your mother told me you've been avoiding this new job," He perked up his glasses, watching the harsh wave's battle against each other. The gusty wind causing Doc's tuff of hair at the top of his head to go askew, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. "Jim, you can do something with your life, now. You're at that age where-"

"Where kids like me can get to work about 10 different jobs a year, have no life and die doing something you wish you hadn't." I huffed, dragging one knee to my chin, watching as in the distant startling lightening glowed at the horizon of the sea. "I don't wanna work at that freak shows place."

"Mr. Plorp is a great antique collector!" Doc chirped up, smiling at baby Del sleeping soundlessly in the pram. "Did you know he collected one of Captain Nathanial Flint's swords? It's very valuable."

I eyed baby Del, knowing he's got at least 16 years to think of what to be, and until then, has nothing major to worry about. "Doc, why did you wanna become an astronomer?"

I watched Doc's face as he pondered in his intelligent mind, his smile brimming. "I was always fascinated with the world, Jim." He used hand gestures, and at this point, and pointed towards the moon. "I mean, Montressor Spaceport, for example. I was always intrigued of how the moon from here looks like an ordinary semi moon. But in fact, the gravity flux and the layer around the Spaceport can let alien folk be around such an area and be able to breathe, jump and not get carried away, and therefore build such a spectacular Port!" He began to speak with such devotion in his voice I felt kind of bad that I have let my mother down, once again.

"I wanted to see the galaxy." I pouted. "But I dunno know what I want to do, anymore. Mom needs me around, I need to stay out of trouble-"

"Jim, you were on the straight and narrow," He looked at me, a small smile that went sour. "Then after the adventure we had, you turned back into your old self." His smile was completely gone. "Your mother wants you back on that path, and it's sad, killing, to see her break her back for you." He got up and itched his head, straightened his collar and smoothed his hair back. "Goodnight, Jim. Amelia and the girls send their love." And he was gone, up the steps with ease with baby Del.

I slumped back, looking at the raging black sea.

Where did that weird creature go? Was it rare? Was that valuable?

With that, I stood up slowly, knowing I can't let my mom down again. So headed for Mr. Plorp's antique shop a few streets down, and then rain just starting to come down in sheets and a low growl of thunder in the air.

"Damn it!"


	4. Chapter 4

Eventually, as I felt the waters gradually getting warmer and softer, I reached Atlantica. But I was not prepared for who was waiting for me.

As I was carried softly to the halls of my room, father was in front of the cloth that covered our privacy.

His complexion was deeply worrying, his skin a little ashen, his lips an odd colour and his scaled tail becoming duller by the day. Even though he restricted me and the girls to do a lot with our lives from mother's death, I love him with all my heart, and it scares me to think he won't be here one day.

Then his ice cold stare turned on me, his white hair and beard wavered, his staff in his left hand had a glow of an angry deep gold.

"Ariel..." His voice trailed, his brittle voice, even with a whisper, always had a power to it. And by just saying my name, it gave me chills. "Attina followed you."

With that, I cursed to myself and looked away from him, coming only 4 tails away from him.

I only went to the surface, how could Attina follow me so quickly?

"Daddy, I-"

"I don't wanna hear it," His booming voice sent a chilling wave through the waters that I jumped. "I don't want you in danger, and here you are, willingly swimming to the surface? We have rules not to go up there because of the dangers-"

"But the possibilities are endless, daddy." I managed to squirt out, giving him one quick look and the expression on his face made me look away since it almost broke my heart.

"Your mother-"

"I know mother died because of humans and their contraptions," I braced my hands together and scrunched my face, my frustration and plea coming out in sudden bursts of words. "But, there can be friendships made! We can learn from humans, they can show us things that we never even knew would make sense or be believable!"

"Ariel." He said softly, clearly tired of my outbursts and behaviour lately. His head dipped and so did his crown he had to hold it up from it not slipping. "Humans cannot be trusted, you know that. It's just too dangerous to risk you, my family, and my people!" His voice, again, boomed through the hall and even made the cloth to the girls room shake.

He gently swam past me, and I had an urge to turn around and make my point a bit more clear. But he was having none of it. And when my red hair settled around me, my eyes caught movement in front of me.

There, moving the cloth out of the way, only 3 of my sisters were watching me with sad faces. Attina, Aquata and Alana. Aquata's big brown hair like a puffer fish on her head, but her biggest feature was her round brown eyes, and they were miserable, as well as her sad little pout. Alana and her middle parted black hair swept along her shoulders as she moved away from Attina and Aquata, her sadness the most noticeable as she stared at me, her large blue eyes almost popping out of her head.

Then there was Attina, her brown hair, almost red was down and messy, guess she was in the middle of doing it before they all heard the yells.

"Ariel..."

"Don't." I stopped Attina short; I didn't even want to look at her. I love her, I love all my sisters, but Attina followed me, and even reported back to my father. "I just..." Alana reached a hand out to me but I turned 90 degrees away from all three of them. "I just wish he would understand, wish all of you would understand. I want everyone to be happy, instead of living in the blue, not knowing what can await us." I pouted at Alana, who just awkwardly winced.

"Me too," Alana croaked, rubbing her arms and looking back at Aquata and Attina, but they were avoiding her gaze. "But you know as well as we do, nothing good can come from humans-"She said painfully at the end, but I was getting really sick of all the 'nothing good can come' and the 'it's dangerous' crap.

"No, I don't know." I faced them; I could feel my brows meeting in the middle of my forehead from anger. "Because I am always told, commanded not to go up there. So I'm always not in the know." I turned my hurt gaze on Attina. "But when I went up there, I saw something that would've blown everyone in the water away, literally."

I had the satisfaction to see Attina's pained face before I left, but I regretted making her feel that way.

I sat on a flat rock for hours, just staring at the different fish that swept past, their smiles were genuine, but my fake smiles felt too painful to return, so stopped. And as I stared at the glistening surface above that was so hard to spot because I was so far down, everyone was so far down, I wanted to go back up again.

I wanted to feel that gusty force, the water that dropped from the skies, and that flying machine, and that boy that I saw. If there were only more humans, how amazing it could be to interact, to see if they can understand, and know if they can help us face any possibility...

With such little thought, I looked around to see no one around to know me personally would follow me. And with my mind made up, I began to swim away from Atlantica, out of the border and as I was out of sight from stranger mer-folk, I started for the surface.

The closer I got, the more I felt alive, the clearer I felt about my choice and opinion of the help we could get. The waves weren't as hard as before, they were gentler as I reached the glistening top. I even saw the ripples of the water above.

I smiled to myself as I was just an arm away from the surface; I stayed still, the calm waters softly moving me side to side. The water rippled, and I genuinely saw the sun. It stayed still, and even from touching range of exploding from the water, I felt its warmth. And I didn't want to not feel it ever again.

And cautiously, ever so slowly, I allowed my big head to crack the surface, my hair splaying around me like blood, and just as my nose was out of the water, I peered up.

My neck arched and eyes wide as I stared in utter awe of the bright sun. It glowed a white but its aura a faint yellow I couldn't make out because I had to squint from its painful rays.

"Whoa..." I gasped, the absolute beauty of the sun was enough for me to cry, but the fluffy things around it I believed were called Clouds were so cute and looked edible I wanted to reach out and pluck it from the light blue sky.

Then I looked at a high cliff point and saw a large building, made of wood by the looks of it, and around it were large and very long lines coming out where some metal machines rested.

I swam along the surface, passing along seagulls and other birds that awkwardly turned their heads at me, squawking and picking at fish beneath them. My hair trailed behind me and I kept my tail beneath the surface just in case.

Once I had moved around the high land, I seen the land got steeper and steeper until I saw a golden low point at the very end which was miles away.

Heaving a heavy breath and stretching my arms stupidly, I got underwater and swam as fast as I could. But once I was powering my way to the other end, I felt objects hit my face and body as I swan past. Little bottles and paper my father would call them, since they drifted to the bottom of our land.

But once I was sure I made it to the lowest area of the human land, I popped my head out of the water and had to duck immediately from a flying board with a young boy on. About 10 years old and smiling like a happy child, and he was heading for the low point which was actually a beach, covered in golden sand, and it looked so warm.

It wasn't crowded, but I kept my distance.

I had told father that they could be an answer to help us make friendship, but now that I was here, staring at people, (humans!)I was too scared to approach anyone. Father was right, that humans can be dangerous, some. Some humans can be dangerous, some can be sick. But also some humans would be my friend, right?

And just as I said that, I seen something higher from the beach, the young lad I had seen the first time I broke the water, carrying a crate or box, and he was taking it to a building that was the colour of shells.

Near the ledge of the cliff, I realised I could manage to climb it, sort of.

I glided there, taking notice that humans on the beach were happy. The smiles and laughter was a joyous moment I took in, and I was out of sight of them and a shadow of the Cliffside towered over me.

Okay, the opaque colour of the cliff was a little higher than I expected, but thankfully there was a rock that was raggedy for me to climb.

I began to hike the rock, my fingernails getting cut, scraped and covered in dirt, my hair a wet mess behind me, my fringe sticking to my forehead and cheeks I felt so ungraceful. What an eyeful for first impressions, huh?

I managed to get so high until I had to hang on for dear life when the gusty force barely pushed me off the rock. I sat uncomfortably on a jagged flat area, and examined my tail. My green scaled tail was dotted with red where I had cut it, even my tail end, which is soft as silk was torn a little I could cry. But it would heal in time, I think.

Then I was close enough to grab the edge of the cliff, but when I did, I grabbed something spiky and retracted my hand to find I pulled out a wad of green vegetable looking stuff. I sniffed it and licked a flake. Hmm, it wasn't poisonous.

I chucked it and grabbed again, this time, grappling higher and managing to sloppily drag my body up. But there was a wall, no, some sort of wooden barrier. It was cool; I hadn't seen anything like it before.

My head was over the Cliffside, and I saw hovering machines, flying past so fast like sharks. Humans walking around, some even had metal parts attached to them, some were just fully metal!

My eyes jerked to some of the buildings, made of the concrete floor like my land, but in many different colours like yellow, bright green, red and shell. Some were so tall like rocks on my land, and some had massive attachments that looked odd. I reached for the wooden fence and pulled myself up some more, out of breath from so much work.

Then I heard a noise to my right.

There, the boy. He was empty handed this time and I ducked my head down a little more, so he wouldn't notice me. His hair was a soft brown and eyes a big blue. I smiled to myself since he's the first cute human boy I've seen. He wore bulky black boots and large pale green pants and dirtied pale top that looked a little big for him.

I struggled to move my fringe from my eyes as I watched him intently walk over to a flying machine that stayed still. Its back, I think, was facing the building and the boy and on the back was box's I see. He hefted one and began walking back to the shell coloured building with shiny spaces in the walls and I seen fantastic looking things I couldn't describe what they were.

But in the window was something that made me gasp and bug my eyes. It was a slimy looking blob of bulge with a vest on. It was a fleshy colour and had beady black eyes, no nose but a snout looking...Thing on his face.

I couldn't help myself, I gasped so loud and drew back a little that I heard a loud crash.

I snapped my attention back at the lad, whose big blue eyes were on me, and boy where they huge. The box he had been carrying was at his feet and more fantastic stuff was on the dirty, green ground, some even broke. It was glass, which I believe were the shiny spaces in the walls of the building.

What do I do? What do I say? Should I dive back into the water? Should I help, somehow? He's staring right at me! He's just standing, mouth agape and chest heaving as if he were having some sort of attack. I feel bumps on my skin and my whole body go warm and tingly, and it was not the sun. Oh damn, damn, damn...

"Um, hi...?" I winced. I awkwardly smiled, but I knew I looked stupid from the way I felt my top lip reach my nose. I'm gunna die.

* * *

Okay, if this is getting boring/tiring, critisize me! If it's getting better/building up, tell me! I love a littel encouragement! ;) Btw, I used '4 tails away' instead of '4 feet away' because...well...mermaids dont have feet and wouldnt use a sentence like that :')


	5. Chapter 5

I had just managed to get to Mr. Plorp's antique shop before he was on the phone to fire me.

The rain had soaked me through and through, my jacket was waterlogged and I had to dump it in the back room of the amazing antique shop. The paintwork was a little chipped on the outside boarded walls; the 2nd storey of the building was purely made of glass that showcased the many valuables that took residence here.

The glass panels of the front of the shop had the wording of Mr. Plorp's Marvellous Antique's, and just below that, in a glass casing by the window in the shop were the most valuable. Like one of Captain Flint's swords, it had a golden handle and its silver blade was exceptional. And I was impressed, but inside I was gobsmacked.

It smelled like old people and alien gloop, but other than that it was sustainable. The wooden floors creaked and they were stained a little, but most of it was covered from large tables and cabinets filled with oddities and wonderful creations.

"Wow." I said with awe, the sun in the sky cast a low glow into the shop which was quite nice. Then I saw Mr. Plorp behind the counter.

He was some character, a fleshy pile of alien organs. He had a black vest on, a little tuff of pale blonde hair that stuck up like a mad man's. He was colour of a human's sick corpse, instead of a mouth he had a snout and spoke Flatulence, but mastered English, and over 10 alien languages.

"Jim," It sounded like he had a lisp, but it was all in the snout. "I was about to call your mother, telling her to tell you not to bother coming in today." He smiled at the end of his snout, observing my wet form. "Actually, not to bother coming in at all." He slithered over to me and picked at my drenched shirt with his fleshy trunk arms, he didn't have fingers or palms, so he curled the thinner end of his arm around my shirt, and possibly around objects.

"I'm sorry, Mr Plorp," I said apologetically. Eyeing him as he briefly looked out the window as hover crafts flew by and aliens, robots and humans walked the streets.

"You better be," He turned back to me, both his handless arms behind his back, his black button eyes curiously narrowed on me. "I'll give you a second chance, son. But I warn you, if you don't change your attitude towards work, I'll let you go." He slithered behind the counter and into the backroom, peering back out and looked at me. "Ask me anything and please be on time when you have hours to attend to." Then he was in the backroom and slowly carted back in the room, pushing a large wooden cabinet with glass door and he placed it in the less cluttered part of the shop.

With a shake of my head and smirk playing on my lips, I went over and helped him move it to the wall, dusting my hands after from the amount of muck that had rested on the surfaces.

"Now, Jim," He was already out of breath as he patted his beaded sweaty forehead, or what I think it was. "There's a contractor of mine arriving soon with some new antiques, please go and unload them as soon as they arrive." He slimed back into the backroom and I heard a door squeak open and silently shut. I believe he headed for the 2nd floor either to do more work, or just sleep it off.

I waited at the front of the shop, watching as anyone passed by that I knew. Which was no-one, I didn't have many friends or acquaintances. The sun gleamed through the windows onto the objects it reached; I heard children's laughter close by since the beach was filled with people and aliens.

I heard the engine of a low hover machine, I seen through the window of the huge metal parts on the top and the rickety flamed exhaust that slowly went around the side door.

I sighed and picked myself up from the stool behind the counter and found the side door to the side of a large and heavy cabinet, the side door would be unnoticeable since the cabinet covered it up well.

I exited into the warmth of the wind yet coldness of the shadow since the sun had already timed itself on the other side of the shop, and other side of our planet.

"Son, Mr. Plorp here?" A fat alien tumbled out of the craft. He was a friendly man, he had a small head that was covered in red fur except his face, which he had a distinctive big nose and lower jaw was more pronounced, and his brow hovered over his eyes, casting his dark black eyes in shadow. He reached to about my waist with stumpy legs and short arms, the back of his small yet sausage like fingers were also covered in smaller red hairs and his accent was rich Jevenure, a language popular in south of Montresser.

"I'm his new worker, Jim Hawkins." I firmly shook the small aliens hand and he smiled back, his bottom teeth showing.

"Nice to meet you, boy," He waddled over to the craft and unlocked the boot, a metal sheet quickly lifted to show a few box's that were new with what I expected, old and expensive antiques. "I'm Humphry Sumphuller. But everyone calls me Stump. I know, it's pretty ironic." He had a deep chuckle that I chimed in with.

He turned back to me and pointed behind him. "You unload these while I have a little chat with Mr. Plorp on the next delivery, Jim." He waddled into the side door and behind the counter into the backroom as I turned back to the boot full of valuables.

I sighed and rubbed my eyes before I started to pick up quite heavy box's and heaved them into the shop and backroom and began to pile up. I managed to pile up about 3 box's and went back out to the craft to see a small child whose leg was made of metal parts and was quietly whirring to function as he stood on his tiptoes to peek in, and I barely heard him whisper in awe.

"Hey," I said softly and kneeled by the boy who gently cowered at my voice. He had bright blue eyes and hair the same colour of mine, a rich brown. He pointed into the boot and back at me.

"They're cool." I thought he was looking at the box's, but noticed the more boxes I had taken out, the more the antiques were just in see through glass cases with wooden or metal panelling.

"I know, right." I smiled at him, looking back at the boot with odd trinkets, and noticed there was a small tin by one of the glass cases, and I heard the boy murmur an 'ouch' at his leg and rubbed at his eyes and had a sad pout. "Your leg hurtin' you?" I asked softly, watching as he looked down at his leg and bent his knee slowly and looking back at me.

"I was in a hover car accident when I was three." He held up three fingers and the first I noticed the last two fingers on the end were also made of parts of machinery that slowly worked. "My mummy says I'm her lucky charm that I survived." His smiled boomed sun-shine bright and I smiled back at him.

I reached into the boot and grabbed the tin by the glass case and cracked opened the rusted tin to find old century playing cards that were quite valuable. The boy wouldn't know that, though. I closed the tin shut and held my finger to my lips. "Don't tell anyone I gave you this." And smiled a safe and promising smirk, and handed the tin to the boy who took a little time to open it.

The boy gasped as he peered inside and smiled up at me with a toothy grin, his eyes squinty from his cheeks being so high. "Thank you so much!" He quickly came into my space and hugged me before running off towards the beach in an odd sprint that was lopsided.

I smiled and rose to my feet and grabbed the last cardboard box that to the left that was the lightest box there was and began to head to the side door, spotted Mr. Plorp and Stump chatting in the front window, noticing they wouldn't have seen me give that little boy them cards. But I heard a noise to my right, but that was the cliff edge to the sea.

I turned my head to see first see red hair, and saw it was stuck to a pale yet healthy coloured face. A girl, with brightly coloured lips and big blue eyes that stared at the front window, she then covered her lips in shock from what she saw of Mr. Plorp.

In shock myself, I let the box stupidly slip through my hands and it crashed to the ground at me feet, it tipped open and shattered glass flew out, brass handles and odd sphere balls rolled out and I watched as her eyes met mine.

It was quiet all of a sudden, and a few beats of my heart went by quick, and I heard it from my ear. Her blood red hair was stuck to her forehead and around her cheeks and down her chest which was hidden from the cliff edge, her hand slowly coming from her mouth and her mouth twitching.

"Umm, hi...?" It trailed off into a question, but I couldn't answer her in time because Mr. Plorp and Stump came from the side door and analysed the damage I done to the new antiques, and I looked back to see a whip of her blood red hair ascend down.

"Jim?" Mr. Plorp spitted out, looking at me confusingly, and I looked back at the cliff edge as if it would answer for me. But she was gone, and they both looked at me with puzzled expressions.

"Sorry, sir." I bent down quick and picked up the remaining odd bits of antiques that were salvageable. "I saw-Err, a mutant rat!" A mutant rat could live and fester among the cliff edges in burrows on the actual cliffs; they were the size of hover car engines and tails as strong as wire rope and were known to tear a seagull to bits.

"Oh those rats have been into my shop once, took a chair leg to one and never came back." Mr. Plorp numbly crossed his arms and stared angrily at the ground, then sadly at the busted box in my arms with shattered pieces inside. "But what about the antiques?" He breathed sadly.

I stared coldly at the contents broken because of me and pulled a face before looking back at Mr. Plorp and Stump by his side, very low down. "I'll work for them, sir. I won't take any pay for the prices they were." I knew it'd take a lot, so I probably would have any pay for the next year because of this.

"Jim, they're a lot, I don't believe you'll be paid for a while." He smiled at the end of his short trunk snout. "I guess you'll really be working voluntarily." He did an odd cackle that came and went with snorts.

Mr. Plorp went back into the shop while Stump went behind me, smiled awkwardly at me and patted my back before climbing into his craft and being on his way.

But I looked back at the cliff edge, the fence a little damp where her went hands and head had been, a little finger mark in the ground where I guessed she dragged herself up.

I dropped the box gently on the ground and peered over the edge of the fence, gently leaning on it since it creaked dangerously. I just saw the waters crash against the Cliffside, the strong scent of salt water and seaweed wafted into my nose, but something caught my eye.

Even though the waters were dark and casted in shadow from the sun, I spotted a colourful green shape powering up towards to north of our town, heading straight for my mother's Benbow Inn at the top of the town. And further up of the colourful green oddity, I saw the bold blood red hair swift with her actions.

It can't be, can it? The legendary siren? The mermaid?

I smiled to myself and rested more on the fence, and cursed and backed up, cautious as it creaked some more and even budged down the direction it was already going.


	6. Chapter 6

Once I got back home at Atlantica, I squealed and twirled within the water like a dolphin, smiling insanely to myself while I hummed my mother's music box tune. I felt like I floated on them fluffy things called clouds all the way to the kitchen of the palace.

The octopus head chef, Basil, nodded to me then took a second glance as I approached him. "Good evening, dear Basil, lovely waters, is it not?" I smiled again and drifted to the other cooks.

Basil was a great octopus, he was a deep purple with red tints on bulbous areas, like his head, for instance. He had large black eyes but were friendly non-stop; his mouth was located under him which is sometimes hard for him to talk. His tentacles were all working at once, beating fish eggs, dicing boiled coral and seaweed, holding a boiling metal pan on a volcanic stump that gently released heat, but the food would get out so easily the lid of the pan was always on.

"What is for dinner?" I chirped whilst grabbing a handful of fresh algae from a pot near the rock covered counters that weren't really counters, but shaped like them and took little bites.

"Same as last time," Basil muffled. "Steamed seaweed with side of fish eggs and plankton," He was rocking another boiling pot with a lid on top, and I could hear the rattling of the shells.

We don't normally eat plankton; I wonder why it was on?

I rubbed my lips from the sticky algae, smiled at Basil and nodded to the rest of the kitchen mer-folk staff who flitted around me.

As soon as I exited, I bounced into daddy. My eyes caught his straight away, and through and through was the look of guilt, and it flooded to his expression when his eyes loomed over my face.

"Ariel..." His soft husky voice was getting weak now, it was scaring me. My once happy and glorious mood had disintegrated and I was left with a foul bitterness in my mouth. "I'm sorry, sweetheart; I'm not trying to keep you here because of what happened to Athena, to you and the girl's mother." His big hand came up and gently touched my face. He was broken, and if I told him where I'd just been he'd be even more distraught that it could take its final toll.

I couldn't let him know, and if the girls, any of them found out, they couldn't tell him. Obviously, in daddy, his weakness is showing. But he's a strong merman; he's a fighter, our fighter.

I came in and gave him a tight hug. Even if we did live underwater, we were quite warm blooded, but daddy felt cold to the touch that it made my eyes water, but he couldn't see, thankfully.

I saw Adella and her new "boyfriend", like they've only been going out for 2 weeks and suddenly its official?

She waved at me and I simply smiled back, her boyfriend Zick nodded in my direction as his slimy arm draped around her shoulders. I and my sisters knew he wasn't to be trusted, he's always been sneaky. Yet Adella never listened, she's becoming as rebellious as me...

Now thinking about it, I am becoming devious. I watched after Adella, her sleek seaweed yellow tail glided near Zick's which was a sickening green. The faint orange pearls in her hair were clicking together which I managed to hear from over here.

I ignored them and kept on drifting, the cool waters having a little whooshing feel. A strong current from the south, it couldn't be mating season for the whales yet, could it?

I ignored that and lazily plucked around my room, I tried to sleep, but that was just going nowhere. I was too awake, too excited. The boy's face was too weird; he looked healthy, full of life. He was too cute, his big blue eyes and slight mouth.

I giggled to myself and rolled in my shell of a bed, watching as my red hair floated like silk around my head. He'd definitely notice me again, my hair was too noticeable. He'd spot me anywhere; he'll probably be waiting for me.

With that quick conclusion, I realised I had to see him again. I only lay in bed for about an hour and a half, that's sleep, right?

Brushed my hair with an antique brush my mother had. It had a silver back and sharp sticks on the other end, and it combed out all the tats in my hair. With that done, I looked at my reflection in the cracked mirror. From all the only good objects at the bottom of the sea bed that the humans throw away, most items are salvageable, even if daddy doesn't like that idea. But it does help us, and imagining what else they can help us with is just amazing.

I smiled and rushed out, but Andrina was coming into the room. She gasped and trailed back, catching her breath, her solid sticky green eyes were large. Her short blonde hair tucked back with a big pink shell to decorate.

"Geez, Ariel!" She hissed, looking up and down the corridor, then eyeing me and coming closer as I edged to the wall. "I heard you've been sneaking to the surface." She had a serious face. I can't remember mother's angry or scolding face, but I bet it looked just like this one. Andrina's lips curled in a mad pout and her patience was gone, she sighed and her shoulders dropped. "Ariel, it's dangerous, c'mon!" She was going to give me this lecture, now?

"Andrina, I've heard this from father, Attina and Alana." I held up my hand, ducking my head. "Don't tell anyone." I looked up at her then with pleading eyes. Despite my other sisters, Andrina was my closest one, along with Alana and Attina.

Hey eyes took on sheen and she fought against my stare. But she gave in, rolling her eyes and smiling a little. "Fine, but I won't cover you for the whole night, got it?" She held out her little pinky, waiting to make the promise.

I linked mine with hers and there was a tight squeeze.

I managed to get out of dinner thanks to Andrina, but I did feel bad about missing out, daddy wanted to say sorry with that lovely gesture. But if there is a source of happiness for my people too, I'll take that chance. Especially if I can help daddy.

I swam straight up, no turning back. The waters becoming thinner and thinner, lighter and lighter, the warmth slowly reaching me that it surrounded me. I was breaking the top of the surface that I felt the water from above, the rain, hit down. It pelted off of my skin that I had my arms over my head to shield myself.

I felt stupid after, since it was just rain.

I looked up high, that huge wooden and metal building standing tall with a plume of smoke filtering from a little odd bit at the top. Light danced behind the glass spaces on the wood, shadows moved across it.

I couldn't see the boy, though. He wasn't here, not at the bench I'd first seen him, crouched and looking miserable. His hunched figure made me bolt straight back home; the shock of that first experience is what keeps me coming back.

The thrill, the adventure.

I knew where to go as I started heading right towards the sand land, the beach. The waters were rough, so this would explain the strong current I felt before. There's, what daddy calls it, a storm coming. Where it's just slight vibrations beneath us and affecting our water from bringing in unwanted company to our kingdom, and this isn't good. Daddy isn't in good condition to keep new enemies or unwanted guests at bay...But Attina is, and the girls.

I smiled to myself as I battled against the raging waves, they knocked me out with every crash, pacing me back a few strokes when I got the littlest bit closer.

As soon as I saw the shadowed rock I climbed last, I headed right for it; I saw the cream coloured building on the land above it with the wood fence around it.

With weak struggle, I attempted to climb the rock. But with the water sloshing my body back and forth on the rock, my tail getting cut up, the raw nerve getting bashed against jagged rock making me wince in numb pain.

I eventually let go and drifted on the surface a little while, thinking what I could do, where I could go. I stared sadly at the land, how it was so unfairly high. But the beach was low, I could get up there...But he wouldn't be there, and he is who I want to see the most.

"Um...Hi?" My brain recalled that embarrassing moment the last time I met him...Well, came into contact with him. Oh how I could've said something more...Responsive for him, said something more funny. Yeah, as if that wasn't forehead smacking painful enough.

I limply swam towards the beach, the waters getting higher and stronger, the skies the colour of the sea, strange growling sounds emerged as well as the white flashes above.

I made it to the beach, I peeked around, and no one was out. I believed it was because of the rain, the naturally light coloured sand was dark from the rain that soaked it.

Higher from the beach, there were houses, and more of that spiky green stuff on the ground. Also on the ground were metal walking machines, they creaked and scared me a little. But thankfully I was out of eye sight as I let the tide drift my tired body upon the lovely damp sand.

I was fully revealed. My purple seashell top made my boobs a little bigger, but it was my tail I was worried about, it was big, scaly and bright green, of course it would attract a lot of attention. If it were a hot day on the beach, it'd be crowded like my kingdom on fresh algae days, and it'd cook me like a cod. The rain kept me hydrated and plump and moving.

I used my arms to drag myself to a boulder, my hair clung around my neck and plastered down my back, and its then when I felt the first ray of sun shine. It hit the nape of my neck that was free from my hair, and it made me warm. But I already felt my tail go dry and I glanced down, scared for my own safety.

I was quite a way from the shore, I could make it, but I wanted to see if that boy would appear. I stared at the higher ground, just catching the edge of the building that I last seen him at from the buildings in front of it that were quite ugly and bold.

My tail felt drier, and I heard more rackety noises from machines that whirred down the ground and around sharp corners. A huge shadow casted over my body, and when I threw my neck back to look up, I caught the massive metal machine flying in the air with orange flickering light from its back, and then it glowed a raw blue.

I looked back down, but was shocked and stunned to see a little child just standing a few tails from me. I lifted my chest from the boulder and rested at arm's length from it, mouth agape and casting glances behind him and to my right where more buildings were.

The boy just stood there with something in his hands, he had damp brown hair, and small features, but big blue eyes that were mesmerizing. I flew my hair out of my way and smiled at him, but he backed up a bit.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no..." I whimpered, not wanting to scare a child and stopped my tooth bearing grin. This boy was...odd. His legs whirred and made weird sounds, like scraping, and it's when I stared too long that I noticed his leg was made out of metal parts. It worked with other metal parts to function. "What's your name?" I asked quickly to get his attention before he ran away screaming.

"M-m-m-"He stuttered, he must be really scared. I reached out my hand and smiled a little more, seeming a little desperate for no unwanted attention to be directed at me.

"It's alright, I'm Ariel." I nodded towards him, but his chin went further down.

"M-mummy..." He trailed back, finally his words becoming clear that my brain started to act. He's going to scream, isn't he?

"Crap-"I muffled, my tail getting layered with sand that stuck to my scales, I flapped it against the sand to have some more flicked on instead of batting off. "It's okay, I'm friendly-Hey, I'm friendly!" The boy started to run off, and I heaved myself over the boulder feebly. My gut felt like it was knocked back into my other organs and I felt a little stuck.

My tail was now getting dryer and it was starting to affect my whole body. I was becoming weak, like the fish tales. How the fish would accidently land on land and they cook in the sun. The sun was alright, but it was killing the life in my tail, and my tail was my life. It was weakening me dramatically.

I scoffed as I rolled on the boulder, crawling off of it and diving into the sand, which had an annoying clean sheet over my damp face. I cursed and dragged myself little by little to the shore, the new cool force hitting my body with its invisible touch.

"Agh." I moaned, my hair also collecting sand, and shells for that matter.

When I knew it was getting too much for me and I needed water on my tail, I fluttered my eyes and lolled on my back, slowly breathing.

"There she is!" I heard the distant voice of the boy, the little one who ran away from me. Am I scary? Is my body so hard for them to accept? The lad probably brought his mother, and along with her, her entourage that were going to kill the weird thing on the beach the boy found.

Am I going to die?

I lifted my head with weak muscles and seen the boy, and by his side was the lad. The boy I seen before, his strapping body was hard to see when he wore his bulky jacket, but I seen his eyes and instinctively knew who he was.

And straight away, crossing our distance with quick movements, he was by my side, just like that. I stared at his face, his darling face that made me tingle. I had never felt like this before. Ever. My heart was raving and, even though my tail was cooking in the new rays of sun shine, I smiled up at him. Knowing I looked a state, with sand all over my face and body, shells on my chest and a huge icky green tail that's scaly and slimy with red hair stuck to my body.

His face read worried yet confused, he didn't know where to put his hands, first he put them through his hair and rubbed his eyes as I strained myself to stay awake. The heat knocking me out, I was coming in and out of consciousness, like falling asleep and trying my hardest to keep awake.

Then I felt him when my eyes finally decided to close, and my tail felt like a numb deadweight to my body, I couldn't even feel the gashes on it anymore. But I felt his hands move over it.

"She's boiling, she must need water-Hey, wake up!" He gently patted my face, I felt him. My mind was smiling, it was shining with delight, he was touching me, and he was talking to me, sort of speaking. "Damn." He made a curse under his breath and I heard a gasp from his side and mine. The little boy must still be here, observing this strange creature he found that was me.

I felt a strange feeling over my tail, like a shield, a cooling shield like a shadow casted over it. Then I felt arms, oh wow! Strong arms! They were his arms, right? They were strong as he wrapped them under my thin body, slicking under my tail which I believed he had covered.

My body was against him, I was so close to a human, a human boy! Oh my gosh, how odd, strange...But my chest was raging, hurting, it was a wonderful feeling, then again I was losing consciousness quickly from being dehydrated.

And I just felt his arms around my body and the cool force blowing against my skin, drying it and letting the tiny beads of sand flake off. I felt the steps he took, _thump, thump, thump, thump_. A steady rhythm to make me lose myself to sleep along with my heart, which was smiling, too.


	7. Chapter 7

Mr. Plorp was giving me good work to do, from the mess I made yesterday; I thought he'd forget about the no-pay-for-a-year plan and fire me. But so far, he's kept me on and been nice to me.

I was shifting boxes around and placing new collectables in glass cases and cabinets. Washing and wiping down furniture and glass, dust gathering in my nose I sneezed multiple times, sweeping the floors and fixing up more glass cabinets that Mr. Plorp ordered.

Then I heard the first sweep of rain hit the windows. I looked up from a neat little magnet toy from a few hundred years ago on the counter, stopped my little smile and pursed my lips from the dull clouds lining the skies, an evil colour of grey ascending the clouds, with an animalistic sound to it.

"I'm off out, son," Mr. Plorp buttoned his too-tight vest, setting up his little umbrella machine, a little box robot that follows you anywhere on its wheels, a large pole that boomed into a makeshift umbrella. "There are more antiques that need to be placed in glass cases on the 2nd floor." He muttered out, more like slimed out. I nodded at the rain.

"I hope you're getting good transportation, sir. That rain looks like its getting worse." I placed the toy down and lazily walked to Mr. Plorp, looking out the window to see, after about a minute or so, the cracks on the roads were filling with water quickly.

"I'm getting a cab," He opened the door, the sound of thunder boomed into the shop. "Be a good lad and keep out of trouble." He tipped his new cowboy hat at me and smiled at the tip of his trunk.

I settled back into my seat, huffing after 20 minutes of nothing, no customers and no excitement. When I finished building another glass case and put it upstairs, I heard the door open from the other room.

I shook my head and forced a smile, my first customer of working two days here. I walked from the back room and spotted the little boy from yesterday at a glass case with Captain Flint's sword with assorted lights to make it stand out.

"Oh, wow!" He gushed, his nose up against the glass, causing it to fog up. His bright blue eyes filled with excitement that I couldn't help but make the most of it for him.

"Oh, do you see that?" I pointed over to a glass case, watching him from the corner of my eye as he peeked over his shoulder and eyes bugged out even more.

"What is it?" He looked at me, searching for answers.

"It's an ancient device," I strode over to the case and watched as he followed me like a little Pup. "Before our time, humans used to use these things to heat up food." I looked at the clean yet broken microwave. It was cool to look at, but you wonder why people would use something so heavy and took so long to heat when they could create something so much more diverse and awesome like the Tick, an oval white machine that heated up food at your chosen temperature.

"Oh, does it still work?" He gushed, touching the glass with his fingers; I heard the clink of metal from his other fingers that were robotic and pouted sadly.

"Nope, but this does!" I patted his back gently and ran over to behind the counter where, from the other side was visible antiques. I opened the wooden back slide of the counter and picked out what humans used to call an iPhone. It was sleek and white with a flat black screen. But Mr. Plorp had special people come in to fix it, and when I pressed the top button, it shone to life and I heard the boy gasp in amazement.

"Holy Montressor!" He gaped at the phone as I placed it on the counter. He picked it up and tapped the screen and watched in awe as the Home screen of the iPhone came up. "This is so cool!" He clicked on some of the Apps of the iPhone and squealed in joy as it played old country music, and he funnily bobbed his head to the tune.

"Pretty cool, huh?" I leaned on the counter and watched him. He gave it back and, from his back pocket, brought out the cards I gave him yesterday. They still looked neat and in place, but in a new tin.

"My mummy wanted me to 'take it back where I found it.'" The boy had a saddened face and had a teary sheen to his eyes as he stood on his toes and robot feet to place it numbly on the counter.

I looked at the cards and rubbed my jaw, watching the boy's expression, his whole aura, go miserable. "You know...If I take these back, something bad can happen." The boy's attention perked up as he stared at me. "If these cards are back in this place," I gestured at the shop. "And they go into the wrong hands; massive destruction could rip our planet to shreds!" I shrieked, and the little boy's eyes widened as if his life depended on this. "So...What's your name?" I smiled and whispered.

"Oscar Wilde!" He beamed.

"I dub these magical cards to thee, Sir Oscar Wilde." I held up the cards with great triumph and handed them into the open hands of little Oscar who gripped them and cooed at them.

"I will keep these safe!" He jumped on the spot and ran to the front door. "Thank you, Sir!" He waved back at me before disappearing into the rain.

I chuckled to myself and leaned back into my stool, perching on the back wall, balancing myself as I stared at the door.

That kid has a heart of pure gold. But he could grow up either way. With his pure kindness and mannerism, he could grow up to be such a gentleman, ignoring his robotic disability and be a noble man and have a well earning job.

Or end up like me. Ignoring everyone and disobeying the authorities. Getting into trouble because of his disability, trying to prove in selfish ways that he can do whatever he wants.

I hope he turns out the way I hope he will. To be a true gentleman, he could make it.

A few minutes passed and I sold my first antique for £5o Gold, which was a great deal. I felt so high in myself, yet realised that Mr. Plorp has been doing this for years and probably sold more than £100,000 gold. Then I felt crap about myself.

Just when I was about to go to my mother's up town for some dinner, I was in the back room when I heard the front door open and slam. With a red flag flashing in the back of my mind, I took caution to sneak to the entrance of the back room. I quickly zipped around the corner to find Oscar, a little wet from the rain, leaking water from his robotic limbs onto the wood floor.

I sighed and looked at him, ready to say something, then seen the look of horror in his eyes. He looked shaken, not too much, but something was wrong. "What is it, Osc?" I didn't care on what to nickname my new little pal; I ran to him quickly and bent to his level.

"A weird lady on the beach," He stammered on 'lady' and 'beach'. Damn, it could be a foreign alien that so happened to land their spaceship on the beach. Maybe this weather was perfect for her/them at this temperature?

I sighed again and laughed it off. "Osc, it could be a visitor from another planet-"

"She has no legs and bloody hair." The first thing I caught on was 'no legs'. It couldn't be a cut up body? A murder? Then 'bloody hair' snagged at my memory. The girl from yesterday, the one that vanished within seconds from when she spoke?

"Are you sure?" I looked into his big blue eyes; they were trembling as well as his hands griping the cards, his flesh turning white.

"She said she's 'friendly'." He pouted. With that, I ran into the back room and back to Oscar, opened the door and slammed it shut, locking it and putting the keys into my black coat pocket.

Even if it were raining, I didn't want Oscar to endure whatever was truly there, for all he knew, it could be a cut up female body and I didn't want his fragile mind contorted by such horrors. Even if he has experienced such already... "Stay here." I demanded, looking into his eyes as I jogged down the path to the beach as the rain got into my eyes and I had to squint to see.

The air smelt like ship fumes, wet mud and pavement and sea water. It was bitter in my nose, my hair already seeping with rain water. Trying to keep my eyes open, but the water kept pelting into my eyes and stung as if someone poked my eyes.

I neared the beach; the once bright yellow sparkling partials were now sodden with water, the colour of a surfer's sandy blonde hair. Yes...We still get surfers. I heard the rush of violent waves that were slowly calming, and weirdly enough, the sun pierced the thick clouds and shone light upon the sickening colour sand.

It lit the way towards the beach, slowly as I ran towards it. And I saw her.

I stopped short, breathing hard as I stared at her. She was fumbling over a large boulder that looked rotten with moss. Her arms numbly landing on her stomach, her head to the ground, her blood red hair sticking to her body, covered in sand and shells stuck to her like a badly decorated bathroom. But that...Thing at her waist...No, it _is _her waist! It looked like a huge green Slurp alien had eaten her from the feet and gave up at her waist.

"There she is!" I looked to my side to see Oscar, pointing at her with his cards in his other hand, his attention drawn only to her.

I heard her move, the sound of crunching sand as she moved her head. She raised her elbow to lean on it, and with large blue eyes and lips full of colour, she stared at me, wide eyed and a tick in her cheek.

I was sick with confusion, yet I ran to her. I was scared to see what it was like see her bottom half up close. She reeked of seat water, and her flesh started to dry from the water.

Her head went limp back into the sand, and I heard people start to be social since the sun was out. I looked behind me to see mingling adults and squealing children. I looked back at her, her lips closed, a slight smile playing them.

I looked down at her tail, it was scaly green, and the end was like silk fins that were a little torn. On her scaled green tail red gashes were here and there, seeping red blood. And it looked unhealthily dry, even if I didn't know if she was this...Siren or mermaid, I knew it didn't look right.

I dabbed her tail, a slight sliminess to it, but it was warm, which I believed was a bad, bad thing. Her eyes fluttered to stay open, going from my eyes to Oscar by my side. I heard his rapid breathing in my ear I was scared I'd flinch and poke her in the eye or something.

"She's boiling," I felt my mind tick like a bomb, the sound of children making my nerves bob up and down like the seas at the moment. "She must need water," Her eyes shut firmly, like a weight dragged them down. Shock and a quiet _shit _hit my mind. "Hey, wake up!" I urged, gently patting her cheek which dried sand tumbled off, she was definitely healthy. But her lids didn't even move and dread filled me even more. "Damn." I growled and shook off my bulky jacket. It wasn't big, but it was long enough to cover her tail, which I flailed it over and patted it down so it wouldn't be seen by the public, who would make an uproar if they seen her.

I was in a crouching position; I slid my arm under her cool back, slightly catching her shell top which was quite an eyeful I had to look away forcefully. I laced my hand under her tail that thankfully bent like knees would, and I heaved. Her upped half of her body was light as I imagined Oscar would weigh, but her tail was Mr. Plorp heavy.

I gushed as I hauled her up; having a good grip on her, her arm flopping outwards as her other was by my side, her hair still stuck to her face and neck, shells falling out as well as the sand clinging to my arms.

"What are we going to do with her?" Oscar asked intently as he strode by my side. I thought that over in my head for a few seconds. What am I going to do with her? I can't leave her there on the open beach as people poked at her and gushed over her odd bottom half and probably brought in to our top notch scientists to discover which alien planet she comes from.

No, I have to take her to my house, which is the top half of the Benbow Inn. I heaved again as her body was drooping from my arms a little, she smelt so strongly of sea water that I gagged.

Outside of the shop, Mr. Plorp arrived just on time. He looked at me for the first second, then at the girl in my arms. He couldn't see her weird tail since my coat shrouded it well, but he looked deeply concerned as he paid for his cab ride.

"Oh my word, who is this young woman?" He slithered over and I shouted at the cab driver who was about to take off, he stopped and looked at me from his window of his hover craft.

"I-"I couldn't think of anything, other than the next thing that came out of my mouth. "I know her; she's just been in the water and hit her head on...On a rock." I choked out, but Mr. Plorp looked totally convinced as he flew both limbs to his chest.

"Poor thing," He patted her hair, but I tentatively drew back a little, not enough to notice, but only to make sure he doesn't see. I looked down at Oscar who was still by my side; in pure shock that all he could do was stare at what was under my coat on her body. "Make sure she gets checked out, lad." He tried the front door of his shop when I was teetering over to the cab, which Oscar willingly opened the back door for.

"Keys, Jim?" He held out his floppy limb for his keys, which I winced, because they so happened to be in my coat pocket...On the inside...

"Oscar..." I began, hoping he knew what page I was on. But he was just staring at her tail, eyes wide and mouth agape I was afraid he'd choke on words to do with her tail. "Oscar!" I yelped, and he snapped back to attention, which he gave me it with an odd expression. "Can you get Mr. Plorp's keys from my coat pocket? On the inside?" I asked, my tone seemed normal, but underneath it was laced with fear. I held my breath as he nodded numbly and reached for my coat, praying that it didn't slide off of her tail.

He retrieved the keys and I mentally sighed like a fat man who just ran a marathon. I placed her gently in the back of the cab, which she filled. I struggled to close the door, and noticed the hover car was now on a slight angle, dipping from the weight of her tail.

I grabbed the keys of Oscar and threw them to Mr. Plorp who caught them with a small smile, and nodded as I climbed into the cab, and Oscar was already there, waiting to get in.

"Where do I sit?" He looked around the inside of the cab, looking back at the girl. I heard the cab driver grouching from his time pitifully being wasted.

"Oscar, I need you to do me a mission, okay?" His eyes, once again, beamed as he gripped the cards in his hands he momentarily forgot. "She is a lost alien who is being chased, so I need you to be hush, hush about this and we can help her get home, alright?" I needed to keep him quiet, and with the help of his wild imagination and adventure in him, it would all go well smoothly, I hope.

He nodded and saluted me. "You can count on me...What is your name?" He smiled, knowing it's the same kind of moment when I asked for his.

"My name is Jim, Oscar." I saluted him back. "Jim Hawkins."


	8. Chapter 8

The hover car stuttered to a stop a few feet from Benbow inn, the lights behind the glass windows glowed a homey aura, shadows drifted pass and I wanted to get in there, fast.

The grumpy old alien beside me had tufts of red hair at the top of his balding yet fat rolled head. His eyes sunken from prominent eyebrows and his ghastly mutant pig nose could probably smell my distaste for him.

"Here?" He grumbled, pushing a button which stopped the crappy little engine. "27 Gold and a mint if you have one," He eyed her in the back and cocked an eyebrow the size of an Ey'ey Slug. "It's like the whole ocean is in the back." He rested his hands on the metallic wheel as I paid the grub.

"Okay, thanks." I grunted as I left the car, speed walking as fast as I can. I opened the door and the flood of salt hit my nose, I had to shiver in sourness. I climbed in, and hovering over her body, her skin was plush and plump, her cheekbones high and pink in colour. She really is healthy.

I managed to use one of my hands to loop around her neck, and when her head lolled uncomfortably, I decided to go around her shoulders, and gently scooted her out. Once half in and half out, I cradled her huge tail that I forgot was real heavy and victoriously got her out the cab.

"Thanks, man." I said to the grubby old man who just watched and did nothing and carried her limp body up towards the Benbow inn. The sun was high in the sky and my mother's restaurant would be in full blow. I had to go around the back, if not, the kitchen or front door it is. But inside the kitchen, the door is to go into the busy tables where they are a lot of nosy alien diners.

I hefted her body every time she slipped, even if her tail was slowly drying out, it was still as slimy. I successfully jiggled open the back door and looked down the dimly lit hallway, I heard rustling from the eating area and metal crashes from the kitchen, and the hushed whispers of everyone.

Slowly walking through the wooden hall towards the stairs, I hear the familiar gasp I know all too well.

"Jim!" My mother screeched behind me but quiet enough for only my ears to hear. I heard the back door slam behind me, even the girl in my arms flinched, but was still silent. "What are you doing with...With her..."She shuffled over to my side, and I fluffed off my jacket from her tail for my mother's trusty eyes to see. Thick, red blood still seeped out of her tail it would look fatal on a human child.

I looked up to see my mum's wide eyes, her pupils shrinking and fluttering as they drifted over the girls scaled green tail. "Mum, she's hurt, please just...Help me." I looked at her pleadingly and witnessed my mother's caring side kicking in and nodded. Her hair was coming out of her loose ponytail and her working dress ruffled, sweat beaded her forehead from this place and it's heating system.

She moved between me and the stairs, grappling the girl's top half of the body and I hefted the tail that weighed a little less going up the stairs.

"Who-What is she?" Mum blabbered, looking back constantly as we descended the stairs. I watched her face twist in awkward disgust; I looked down on the girl's face that, again, flinched. Then realised I knocked her tail off of the brass banister.

"I found her-Well, this kid found her," We made it to the top of the corridor and I nodded towards the guest bedroom. "On the shore down town." I grunted.

Mum booted the door, which isn't like her, and we gently placed her on the bed. The king size bed covers were soft and pillows full of Helios duck feathers, "luxurious brand" as the Doc had piped up. The spacing was large and the floor was wooden, Fergul rugs and a window with metal frames to open fully, half or blinds to change the view or temperature.

"I think she's a siren, or mermaid." I rubbed my head, and then winced, knowing there was slime now on my forehead. "I can't take her to the hospital." I nodded towards the tail wounds.

"Well..." She mused, walking around the bed to me, examining the girl. Her red, stringy hair covered most of her chest, but you could still make out her shell bikini top, which mother looked back at me and raised fine eyebrows. "Why can't you?"

"Mum, they'd tear her apart." I looked out at the town below, all busy, smoke puffing out of every house, hover crafts and robots. "They wouldn't know what to do with her. They'd take her to scientists and experiment on her, probably cut her tail off, then goes into the sea to look for more of...Her kind." I folded my arms and struggled to keep my thoughts up with others. It is possibly true, they'd be scared of what power she could possess (I looked back at her fluttering eyes, wondering if she does have power), scared of what she can do to our planet, hell the whole galaxy.

"Jim, we can't keep her here-"

"Mum, we can't chuck her out!" I butted in, facing her and flinging my arms out. "She'd definitely get killed." I watched her face for a few seconds until she smiled sadly.

"You always butt in before I get to finish my sentences." The smile was gone and a serious face came through. "No, there are inspectors coming to brief the place tomorrow in the evening." She nodded towards the girl. "She can stay till then, but tomorrow, she needs to be hidden elsewhere." She smiled again. "But now, I can't help you. I have work to do, but I'll get B.E.N up here."

And with that, she was out of the door, and when I chuckled to myself I spotted movement and seen the girl sit up.

"GAH!" I flinched into a nearby seat, arms perched on a dresser and the wall, stiff as poles and my heart in my throat as her large blue eyes dropped on mine.

"Please, don't freak out!" She gushed, reaching forward and numbly falling on her chest, and holding herself up on her palms. "Please, I need your help." She sounded tired and pained her voice almost cracking.

"I-I-I-I don't know what to do-"I squeaked which is very unmanly of me.

"Plea-"She was cut off when the door to the room bashed open and a happy, bouncy B.E.N jumped in.

"Jimmy-Yikes, who are you!" B.E.N freaked when she said yikes the toned it down. He approached the girl, as I eased in my seat. I relaxed as B.E.N walked around the bed, his round mechanical eyes zooming in on her face, her tail and stringy hair. But I tensed when she was cowering away from him, her eyes seeking help from me, like she wanted me to intervene.

"Don't be afraid." I calmed her, but I was also telling myself this. I slowly got out my seat as B.E.N took out his chest panel and starting dialling and searching for his answers to questions I didn't know he was thinking to himself. I had my head down as I approached the bedside, her eyes the only part of her moving, watching my every move it made me uneasy.

I was by her side, gently crouching to not make her feel small. "Do you have a name?" I said calmly, hearing my own voice strain.

"Ariel." She said sourly, her face twisted in pain as she squirmed so she was lying back on the pillows, her hair strung along her face and was caught around her neck, her chest quickly going up and down, which I shouldn't be looking. But I was attracted to her large blue eyes up close. They seemed to shine, a brilliant blue, blazing, in fact. "What's yours?" She whimpered, her voice slowly getting quieter and raspier.

"Jim." There was no need for me to fully introduce myself in this situation. The whirring of B.E.N's panel was buzzing in the background as me and Ariel stared at each other. It was eerie, and yet soothing. She was slowly breathing to the beat of my heart, quick yet sudden. Her eyes drooping here and there, her hand gently moving from her side to meet mine.

I was resting my hands on top of each other on the bed, with my chin upon both hands, and her hand connected to my face that I flinched from how cold she now was just a moment ago.

"Are you meant to be this cold?" I raised my head, from making her gasp with my sudden jerk.

"I'm warm-blooded." She croaked. Now I was worried.

"B.E.N, what's wrong with her!" I whispered harshly, his pixel blue eyes changing dramatically.

"She's a mermaid, Jimmy." He typed with his stick thin metal fingers, tapping wicked fast. "She thrives underwater, surviving on eating algae and seaweed, most likely with many others and has this fish like tail that is like another life, another heart for them-"

"Alright, alright, but what's wrong with her!" I demanded, standing suddenly that this time, she didn't even realise. Her eyes were finally closed. "Damn, B.E.N what is it?" I whisked by her cold body, my knees sinking the bed by her side that she dipped towards me. I gently touched her cheek, cold to the touch and her green scaly tail wasn't shining in the light anymore.

"Jimmy, mermaid's can only survive for so long on land without sea water on their tail-"I didn't let B.E.N finish his sentence, I quickly grabbed her and her heavy tail and rushed out of the door and down the hall towards the bathroom and set her down on the counter that was clear. The bathroom was a pure white, with a light blue checker shower curtain. A mega toilet and floor bath, where the floor has a bath tub, but technically it's a hole in the floor.

I started to fill it with warm water, then realised it needs to be cold. But I didn't know what would be best, so filled it with warm water, I was about to run down to the kitchen to get bottles of salt, until I ran into B.E.N who was still tapping at his chest panel in the doorway.

"She needs sea water on that tail straight away, Jimmy, or she'll start drifting in and out of consciousness." He whirred.

"Alright, B.E.N, get me some salt from the kitchen." I turned and went back to Ariel. "Now!" I commanded when I still seem him there, tapping away. He fumbled with his panel and saluted me, hearing the whirr of his joints move as he ran.

I looked down on her, the window with a beach themed blind was on, and automatic light filled the room, her skin now pale and ashy. Her lips cracked, but her eyes fluttered open.

"Ah," She moaned as she tried to move on the hard counter.

"Don't move," I held her down by the shoulders, letting up when I felt I was pressing down on her too hard. "I'm going to help you." Her blue eyes, startling, wavered on my face for a few seconds; a small smile crept on her face, her lips splitting.

When I was about to leave her and get the salt myself, B.E.N rushed into the bathroom, grease dripping from his tin head, even robots sweat. He rushed past me and dolloped a heap of salt into the warm water, sprinkling and disintegrating straight away and I could already smell salty water.

I carefully picked her up and waddled over to the floor bath, knowing it would be difficult to put her in by herself from this height, I kicked off my boots with ease and slowly started to step into the bath, the ceramic steps almost made me slip, but my now dampened socks made me stick.

"Jim, are you sure you wanna get wet?" B.E.N asked, he tentatively held the salt container, it screeched when he twisted it in his metal hands.

"I'll have to get used to it." I peered down on her face, her eyes open in slits, the steam making it hard to bare. I kept descending into the large tub, water soaking my trousers, seeping higher and higher to the belt. When I was waist deep, I loosened my arms; Ariel began to float in the water.

I begged to myself that this worked, letting the water soak up her hair, her tail getting plump and sleek, her fins at the end of her tail splashing, when my eyes reached hers, they were big and bright, a pink smile on her mouth.

She moved so fast I didn't expect it; her embracing hug knocked me onto the tub steps, knocking my coxis and making me wince.

I don't normally like hugs, but this hug was odd, I actually enjoyed it. Her shell top however dug into my chest. I looked down her back to see her tail moving willingly and it looked 10X better already. Even B.E.N to the side was wiping oil from his eyes.

"Are you crying, B.E.N?" I chuckled, Ariel leaning back to smile up at the robot.

"No, I just got some speck in my eyes." He wailed fully and rolled to his knees.

"Are you okay, now?" I asked, my hands resting on her sides, her skin felt smooth and I was talking only to her, B.E.N's tearing up and the water still running and thundering into the bath.

"Yes." She chirped up, her eyes so transfixed on my body. "Wow, your skin is just like mine!" She poked at my collar bone, fingering my cheekbones and playing with my hair and feeling her own. "Your hair is so soft!" She cheeped. Then her fingers picked at my clothes. "What is this?" She tugged at my shirt that I thought she was almost going to pull it off, but I peeled her hands away.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I chuckled, but worried she didn't know these things. "I'm wearing clothes, what you're..." I gestured nonchalantly to her bikini shell top. "Like you have...On." I rubbed my lips, trying not to look, so stared at her eyes.

"My shell top?" She half smiled still perched against me.

"Yeah, so wait," I held my hands up. "You seriously haven't been around someone?" I couldn't believe she hasn't been around a human or robot, it sounds inhumane.

"Around someone_ human_." She confirmed. Her eyes diverted from my clothes to my eyes, and she suddenly became all shy, her smile was slowly dispersing. "You're the first human I saw." I was about to butt in, she seen me about to move my lips and laced one finger against them, I was speechless and stunned for a second. "I seen you the other day, water fell from the sky, and you were on this high ground. I didn't want you to see me, so tried to swim away." She smiled again, her teeth a brilliant white.

"So you were the thing I seen in the water..." I whispered to myself but she heard.

"Thing?"


	9. Chapter 9

The sleepiness started to faze when I felt a sudden burst of cool force jolt against my side, a throbbing ache in my tail and a pounding in my head. Was I dying? Is this what death feels like? No, it can't, it'd be much worse.

I felt something...Soft and squidgy rubbed under my neck. I couldn't concentrate, and I felt my own lifeless head roll uncomfortably to the left and lolled to the right.

Is this some sort of dream, is it one of them dreams where it feels so real that you actually fall from your bed?

Then another loop, around my shoulders, my brain said it was rough, but my dazed mind made it feel soft and comfy. And then I felt that cold force zip up my body, giving me chills, a filmy cover over my tail.

What, what was that? Something gripping under my tail.

Buzz, buzz, buzz. It was phased a little way away. It was close, though. I heard it. Then the piercing sound of a slam.

BANG!

It made me flinch awake, my eyes staring up at a blank blue canvas. Little speckles of white here and there and a hue glow of yellow. And I noticed a weird shaped face; it had no eyes and a little stubble. Then I realised it was that lad from earlier!

It was his chin, he was carrying me. It was his warm, fleshy arm around my warm shoulders, his arms under my bent tail. I didn't want him to see me awake, then he'd ask questions, and I was weak as it is. It started to become hard to breathe, already.

I felt him stop, my body jilted to the side that wasn't against him, which I enjoyed. I heard something rattle, then felt my head and back slowly drop backwards. I was falling backwards.

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying hard to remain unconscious. Suddenly, an arm was swept upon my back, cradling me once again. Damn, he was good at catching falling girls.

Then I-we-entered a different place, I knew we did. The space felt warmer, much warmer. And I felt cooler. My fingertips were ice cold as I dabbed them on one another without him realising. There was noise. Much clearer than before when I was in a fuzzy state. It was bustling, like the kitchen at the palace. Whispers? No, it was actual talk, conversation, shouting and chilling children screams. It was all muffled, straining my ears I couldn't make out a single thing.

Then I heard close up shuffling, he was moving again. Then I gritted my teeth so not to look pained.

"Jim!" A shrieking woman squealed, I steeled muscles but I still managed to twitch just a little, which I mentally hit myself for. I was jerked into a swerve; I felt my stringy hair slap on my face, which irritated me. "What are you doing with...With her?" To me, it sounded shocked and disappointed, but her voice scared me. I needed to see her face. I pried one eye open but couldn't when he tried to shake my bottom half.

I felt the film over my tail gently slide off the tip of my tail; it was his jacket, yes? When it was off, the warm moisture enveloped it and I felt the throbbing pain in my tail strengthen. I imagined a huge vein pumping wildly at the side, bulging with storm wave speed. I still felt the wounds on my tail, the trickle of blood trail down my tail, drops of blood tickling the tip of my tail.

I heard the softest gasp, ever. It was the woman by the boy's side, and I heard more shuffling. "Mum," The boy's voice was worried; it pained me a little as I tried not to squirm. But now I know who that woman is to this boy, it's his mother. "She's hurt, please just..." As his voice trailed, I breathed deeply to not speak up. "Help me." Dread and struggle, his voice was laced with it.

All of a sudden, I was whisked into twirls, I felt a new pair of hands support my flat, cool back, and warm hands grip my tail and I felt movement again. My hair wisped side to side as it hung. And I was bent; my top half was definitely higher than my tail at an angle.

"Who-What is she?" The woman blurted. Ouch. That really hurt, I was tempted not to bug my eyes at her and flip my heavy tail at her face. Then again, I'd get dropped and probably have my head cracked on the surface of whatever they were carrying me.

"I found her-Well, this kid found her," The boy said. The child, the sweet little boy that told this boy to get me, the little boy that was 80 parts human, and 20 parts metal. The poor child. I believe we were on level ground, because my body tipped and my chest felt align with my lengthy tail. "On the shore down town." The boy finished.

BANG! Sounded like father's power of the trident, how it could crack or explode a simple underwater boulder. And it sounded like a rebound, like whatever was hit, hit something else from impact.

The next thing I know, I was lay upon a plush material. It felt like I was floating on water and I liked it. I didn't so much as roll and crush my head into this softness as they were still in the room. But my tail was still killing me, literally. It was so painful, the pain began to rivet through my spine.

Wherever I was, I still felt the warmth of the area that surrounded me, and the warmth from the bright sun outside. Could I still be out?

"I think she's a siren, or mermaid." The boy pointed out to his mum. Mermaid, I thought to myself and smiled. Then shook my head mentally to wipe it off. I could still feel their stares, so made sure not to flutter my eyes. "I can't take her to the hospital." Hospital? What in the name of Trident is that?

"Well..." I heard knocking on the floor; it went around me on this soft cloud. "Why can't you?" I heard the doubt in the woman's voice.

"Mum, they'd tear her apart." I stopped breathing for a second and determined whether or not to sit upright from the sudden jolt in my heart. "They wouldn't know what to do with her. They'd take her to scientists and experiment on her, probably cut her tail off, then goes into the sea to look for more of...Her kind."

I opened my eyes, and felt them water from how wide they opened from terror. I peered at the woman and lad by the square glass; he was looking out while the woman was looking at him, admiring him, her son.

I felt a ghostly numb sensation around my waist, closing in on my tail. Me without a tail, really! I stirred a little, uncomfortable with the decision I made to come to the land, to make a stupid choice to interact with humans, how reckless I am to think they can help us when they can kill us. Experiment? It sounds horrific, and I don't want to be a part of it.

"Jim, we can't keep her here-"I was scared to think they'd chuck me out, like rotten kelp.

"Mum, we can't chuck her out!" I watched as he flung his arms around as if he were being attacked, I stifled a giggle. "She'd definitely get killed." Okay, that made my giggle and smile disappear. I looked at my sides to see what I was on was some sort of quilt, like the kind I have back home. But mine and my sisters were made up of materials that would float on the surface, like children's clothes that were long gone, and they'd be patched up with others to create quilts.

"You always butt in before I finish my sentences." The woman's face took on an edgy glare towards her son. "No, there are inspectors coming to brief the place tomorrow in the evening." The woman nodded towards me and I quickly shut my eyes, when she carried on talking I knew she didn't spot me. "She can stay until then, but tomorrow, she needs to be hidden elsewhere." I heard the rasp of urgency in that voice, as if I were something dangerous. Or, could I be in danger? I peeped open an eye to watch them, some more. "But now, I can't help you. I have work to do, but I'll get B.E.N up here." Ben, who's Ben? I hope he's not some creepy looking thing like the slug monster at the place where the boy first seen me.

The woman started moving, and I closed my eye like it had never been slightly cracked open once. I heard the knocks, the floor beneath me vibrated and the door she'd come through (which I now realise was the one she banged open) and slammed it shut. The sound of bustling far away was heard.

I heard the boy chuckle, and knew it was only me and him. For now, until that Ben thing/human showed up.

Shall I say something? Shall I talk to him? Or shall I remain dead-like until he decides to wake me up?

Too late, I was already opening my eyes and staring at him. He looked handsome in this light. Down under the sea, there is no natural light. The only light we use is from the palace structure which glows, so mer-folk would be shown in awkward and sick angles of themselves. But we see in the dark, anyways.

I began to sit up, a numb pain in my tail starting to spread like a disease. My hair crumbled on my chest, covering my shell top and falling along my shoulders and draped down my back. Sand now rolled to my sinking weight of the cloud I was on.

Before I could say a thing, the boy's hand that rubbed his jaw came down and his head diverted to me, and his eyes bulged like Sebastian's when I kept running away from home.

"GAH!" The boy collapsed to a nearby seat and I instantly reached out. Ugh, why am I so bad at this? My eyes caught his; shock was flooding them, never minding his heaving chest.

"Please don't freak out!" When I reached my hand out again, a spine breaking pain escalated up my back, electrifying through my nerves and I fell forward, the pain so sick I fell forward and braced myself on my palms like poles. I couldn't describe pain like this. I must've been out of water for about half an hour and a bit until this overwhelming pain occurred. My hair in strings shrouded my face, I tried to speak but it came out so weak. "Please, I need your help." I whined.

He stammered on the word 'I'. "I don't know what to do-"I smiled as his last word came out squeaky, but the pain in my tail was getting more vibrant, like exploding colours in my vision.

"Plea-"I spoke out but when I did, the door boomed open, a gusty force hit me and the smell of brass hit my nose and my eyes watered. A smell I hadn't smelt often so strong and so close tickled my nose.

Then a seaweed thin figure was at the doorway, large blue eyes that changed shape, only in the eyes, a small black dot to look as a pupil. I heard the whir of moving parts, like the boy at the beach, his metal workings snapping to work. It was like this creature before me.

"Jimmy-"He was on his way to the boy, who I thought was Jim, but is now Jimmy. Then the thing's eyes clicked onto me, he jumped and little sheets of metal above his eyes moved up, as if he was in shock. And his eyes didn't change shape, they just...Moved...Inside his eyes. "Yikes, who are you!" His voice a loud, screechy sound. Funny, if I were not in pain.

He came closer, but not slowly to show he was not dangerous to such vulnerability, nope. He came throttling towards me, and I seized back, more thunderous pain sprung in my body, shooting from my tail. I braced myself against more softness, fluffed up rectangular puffiness. But the metal man circled around me, his eyes literally zooming in on me, coming up against my face, the smell of metal more strong and my personal space evaporated.

I peeked at the boy who just relaxed against the chair, his face becoming distraught.

"Don't be afraid." His voice was cool and collected and I relaxed a little, too. My breaths shallower and slower. The metal man called Ben extracted a circle metal disk from his chest, I squeaked and watched in interest as his thin little fingers jabbed away on it. I saw from the sheen of Ben's body that on the disk was something responding to his touch like some sort of screen.

I sat up slightly and watched as Ben tapped away and spotted Jim slowly rising from his seat. He did look uncomfortable, but then again, so do I. He bowed his head as he approached my side; he stood still for a while, his eyes dropping on mine. He began to crouch to my level.

"Do you have a name?" That was a stupid question, we all have names. Even pets do, but he looked earnest, more frightened, but earnest.

"Ariel." I said my own name which sounded weird, but the pain struck again, and it showed in my face as I felt my features scrunch together, and I couldn't be bothered to sit up for long and sank back in the softness of the rectangular puffiness. I felt the tug of my hair buried under my back around my neck, and down my cool front. He just stared at me, as I turned my head lazily towards him, who rested his head on his hands, and his hands rested on the cloud. "What's yours?" Again, my face squinted in pain, my throat cracking like the ground under water when bubbles of air escape.

"Jim." His eyes ever so slightly moved to Ben, then mine again, and the stayed.

The tapping was still frantic was beside me, but I couldn't care, because his eyes were staring into mine, and I couldn't break the connection. My eyes kept closing, no matter how much I was alive and awake in my body, my brain was telling me different. My eyelids kept fluttering, and my chest slowly going up, and quickly going down. The pain quite numb that I couldn't feel it anymore.

I reached out my hand, which looked paler than usual, and it connected to his. And he jerked back as if I bit him.

"Are you meant to be this cold?" I checked my metal self. No, I'm warm blooded; I'm warm, aren't I? I'm sick, no. I'm dying; the pain was all too real in my tail, my system.

"I'm warm blooded." I managed to crack out, even hearing myself sounded unnerving.

"B.E.N, what's wrong with her!" His voice sounded so loud, even when I know he wasn't but it sounded like a thunder clap in my ear drum.

"She's a mermaid, Jimmy." Ben reported back, and I was just struggling to keep awake as I felt like my whole body was shutting down on itself. "She thrives underwater, surviving on eating algae and seaweed, most likely with many others and has this fish like tail that is like another life, another heart for them-"

"Alright, alright," I felt the strain in his voice, the worry. Really, a human worrying about me? That would make me laugh, but even breathing now was becoming unbearable. "But what's wrong with her?" His voice reverberated through me, and I had to close my eyes. I didn't have the energy to move, or to lift my eyelids. Once they were down, they were never coming back up. But I could still hear, I'm not fully dead!

Thinking of that sounded mad.

I heard Jim beside me move, while he climbed on the cloud by my side, I felt the weight of the cloud dip under his weight. It was cute, yet unsettling. I could still smell the metal Ben, even Jim, who smelt like the sea. I could still hear the sounds, and I could still feel. I was like a living thing in a shell. Oh my gosh!

"Damn, Ben what's wrong with her?" Hysteria thickened his voice, it was frustrating because I wanted to say 'I'm alright', totally the opposite, but I was already worrying him so much. He really was scared for me...

"Jimmy, mermaid's can only survive for so long on land without sea water on their tail-"Ben spoke up, but he didn't finish. All of a sudden, I felt the thrash of skin against skin as Jim roughly grabbed under my back and tail, hefted me up and rushed. He was carrying me through a door, even unaware of it; I could feel the closeness of the wall as we passed through that door.

The hollow thuds of his boots on the floor were like a vein pump in my skull. He was so quick; my arm to the side was skimming off the wall. I knew we entered another room, because it was cool and it smelt funny. Like water, dirty water. Then I was placed on the floor, no, my arm was hanging off the edge until Jim's warm hand placed it back to my side. But, damn! This was freezing!

The next sound was hard to describe, but it was thrashing down, like...Water against an object? Then the cool atmosphere was getting stuffy, so I'm guessing it was warm water. Oh, I haven't been in warm water since last year. And the feel of it fluttering around was soothing.

More thuds on the floor, then I heard a screech, guessing it was Ben. It was hard not to see them, but only hearing their conversation. Did...Did Jim think I was knocked out, or something? I giggled in my mind, when this really wasn't the time. I am virtually on the brink of death, sort of speak.

"She needs sea water on that tail straight away, Jimmy, or she'll start drifting in and out of consciousness." The metallic churns of the metal Ben was distant, but his words were more sunken. This is what I'm doing, drifting in and out.

"Alright, B.E.N, get me some salt from the kitchen." Jim put orders on metal Ben, like father would to me. Suddenly, I felt lighter. No longer with the heavy feeling in my eyes, I managed to tense my jaw, feeling my ears move. I tried to open my eyes, or part my lips. But no such luck. "Now!" Jim burst, and I fluttered my eyes open to see him looking down on me, but once my eyes were open, so was the pain. This time, amplified.

"Ah!" It was like a grunt, but I could feel the surface I was on, where my shoulder blades dug into the firmness of the floor or bench I was on.

"Don't move." He pressed on my shoulders, which made me wince, since he was actually making the pain more hurtful. He let up, thankfully, I felt like swearing for a second, there. "I'm going to help you."

H-Help? Really? I felt a sheen sheet come over my eyes, but I couldn't cry now. It was too much of a joyous moment; a human actually wants to help me. A human, who my father said were dangerous, not trustworthy, wanted to help me, and in my defeating state. I tried for a smile, but I felt my dried out lips crack under pressure, I was worried in case blood spilt.

Seconds later, I heard the stomps of metal Ben rush through the room, which was now filled with heavy warm moisture. Even that helped with the pain.

I heard something faint, like something dripping onto water; it was hard to make out from the crashing of water, still.

I kept my eyes open as Jim gently picked me up, his fingers digging in my sides; I think to keep me awake. He stopped when he turned around, the moisture now thickening my tail, I could feel it. Then the smell hit me, I felt my senses kicking up, it was seawater. My heart thudded now, and I was excited. But Jim was just staring down, not on me, but something beyond me.

The soft thud of something hitting the deck and it felt as if Jim became smaller, then it felt even weirder when the wall above me became shorter. Jim was going down something, because I felt the condensation of water hit my back, even glistening on my tail, droplets already forming it made me shake.

"Jimmy, are you sure you wanna get wet?" Metal Ben screeched out, his high pitched voice making me want to talk to him, his cheerful tone was so inviting.

"I'll have to get used to it." Straight away I knew he was referring to me, the reason he will get wet. But 'used to it'? Like I want him to get wet because of me all the time, seriously?

Jim then looked down on me, and I could see his glitter of a small smile as he loosened his arms, I was scared for a moment, because I thought he was going to dump me somewhere far below me. But my skin was enveloped in water, salty water. Like fish to food I knew what was happening to my body. It needed this, my tail revitalizing itself, my hair soaking up, too, like a blood cape around my small head. And my skin taking up the water like a good drink, and I felt warm, the pain quickly dispersing and the throb in my tail was completely gone.

I looked up at Jim after closing my eyes in bliss, and I seen from his expression that what was happening was a good thing.

I couldn't contain it, I was so happy that I used the water to thrust me onto Jim, colliding into his body that made a hollow boom, like he hit something hard. I wrapped my arms around his neck, snuggling my face into his. I didn't want to move, actually. I was enjoying this a little too much. Even if Jim smelt like sea water, he also smelt like something exotic, that I had never smelt before.

"Are you crying, Ben?" A low funny chuckle came out of metal Ben from the side. Which is when I realised I was in some sort of tub, the white walls around me, another tub at the far end of the room and this was like a hole in the floor, because this tub was in line with it.

"No," He retorted. "I just got some speck in my eyes." Jim's hands were loose on my sides, but I felt the flinch when he accidently touched the slick fin around my waist that was connected to my tail.

"Are you okay, now?"

"Yes." I cheeped, leaning back and fully taking in this boy called Jim. I didn't realise, out of all the times he's carried me, that his skin was delicate. "Wow, your skin is just like mine!" I wasn't as interested in his skin, rather his hair. It was long at his sides, but he had this fluffy texture to it. Not anymore, once I ran my damp fingers through it. "Your hair is so soft." I giggled, and finally, picked at what he was wearing.

Male mer-folk under the sea don't need any shell tops, unlike women. But males just naturally have their torsos out. Not like it's a bad thing, but sometimes you get the odd plump man, even woman.

"What is this?" I knew what it was, it was his shirt, but the material was even soft. I pulled at his shirt, its durability was strong, but his hands covered mine. I looked down on them, they were rough yet smooth looking, and very bigger than my own small hands.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," He giggled, but he looked troubled. "I'm wearing clothes," I knew that, I felt like thwacking his head. "What you're..." He nodded towards my chest, and finally used a hand and gestured to my shell top, which wasn't always comfortable. "Like you have...On." He stared for too long, and a playful half smile automatically played on my face and he shook his head and looked at me.

"My shell top?"

"Yeah, so wait," His hands went up, flat in between our faces. "You seriously haven't been around someone?" He found it hard to believe. He must've known a great deal about mermaids, well, I know he doesn't. Since poor metal Ben had to give him all the answers.

I didn't want to be sarcastic or stupid either. "Around someone _human_." Instead, I made it easier for him. I stopped fiddling with his clothes and my eyes met his, they were an intense blue. Mine were bang blue, but wow, his eyes were...Blue, like when my father makes lightening strike from his trident to warn someone, or break boulders, it strikes blue sometimes. So yeah, it was like blue lightening. I felt all mushy, but maintained a serious face. "You're the first human I saw."

His lips began to move, but since he interrupts his mother a lot and metal Ben for that matter, I lifted a damp watery finger and kept his lips together. "I seen you the other day, water fell from the sky, and you were on this high ground. I didn't want you to see me, so tried to swim away." I made a grin; I didn't like my smile, much. He didn't know that.

"So you were the thing I seen in the water..." He was deep in thought, and I believed he meant to say that in his mind, but outspoken.

Thing. Am I a thing? Am I unnoticeable? Nothing? That hug just moments ago felt like nothing now, as to what I'm being referred to. I felt like smacking him. Hard.

"Thing?" I repeated, voice full of hurt.


	10. Chapter 10

I stood outside the bathroom, wringing my clothes onto the padded carpet below me, as I heard Ariel splash around and talk to B.E.N. The air was soft and humid; I had to turn people away when they got lost.

But when I had called her 'thing', she really didn't take it lightly. She had the hollow, haunted look on her face, the same my mother seen in my eyes when my father left me years ago.

I thumped my head with my palm, irritated that I said such a horrid thing, especially in front of her.

"...Is he always that...mean?" I heard her hurt voice through the heavy wooden door. I raised my brows and leaned against the door softly, careful for it not to creak. But it felt wrong to listen, but I had to, my breath hung on her every word.

"Jimmy is Jimmy," B.E.N, you stupid robot. "He is a good boy, but he has a few short circuits!" He did that manic laugh of his, I felt like bursting in and pulling his mind out the back of his head. "But..." B.E.N sounded hoarse for a second, I could imagine him bowing his head in thought. "He hasn't always been this nice. Before, he really did have an anger problem. He's changed, dramatically. He's much kinder than he was before."

I titled my head at them words, my heart felt heavy and rough. A big sack of useless muscle.

Could I have really been that mean?

I walked away from the door and down the stairs into the steaming kitchen. The hot air hurt my skin and the smell of poisonous Kelburg berries was enough to knock me out.

"Jim, help me here, please." She said it as a command, so did as she told me to do, since I felt utterly useless. I picked up a plate of roasted Humbug chops, lathered in Maet sauce. It smelt rotten, so I guessed this dish was for some beefy alien.

I followed my mother who had three dishes on each arm; all the smells mixing together in one bomb of stank. In the dining area, it smelt of Purp juice, children sick and alien breath.

The lights dim in some areas for certain aliens, even robots from sensitive parts of metal. Children ran around tables, laughing and holding little mechanical toys, one even knocked me and I nearly tipped my large plate over a breed of alien like Doc. Thankfully, my quick flexibility came into play.

"Table 12." She spoke to me like a co-worker and not a son, lately; it's been like that for a while now. And it was really starting to show in both of us, because of that old fury look in her eyes, every time she looks at me, and the old pout that was constantly playing on my lips.

"Right." I murmured lifelessly, and she looked back on me, with an uncertain look on her face. I roamed to the table at the back, sucking my whole body in when kids ran past, leaning in odd and even impossible angles from large aliens to manoeuvre between tables.

And I was right, the dish I held in both hands was for a grubby, heavy looking alien known as the Heliosa breed. Like a wolf crossed between a man, a very large man, a giant. His back was bent strongly since he didn't fit quite perfectly in his seat, and his legs stretched to the other end of the table, under the chair opposite him. He had long straight brown hair, I wouldn't have realised he was Heliosa if it was not for his length and snout that peered from his curtain of hair. A large black pirate hat and dark cloak with an embroidered badge on with an alien skull that looked deadly.

I placed his plate down, trying not to breathe in the smell he gave off, which could literally singe my nose hairs.

"Enjoy your meal." I tried to sound cheerful, but my regular manner was playing up again.

"Hold a sec, boy!" The snarl from behind me slithered, like his head sized claws that locked on my upper arm and he twisted so I had to turn uncomfortably.

The noise behind me was still going on, so I'm guessing no one was seeing what was happening.

I kept my breathing steady as the alien looked me in the eyes. His were beaded, no colour but black and in shadow that was menacing. He was snarling, a low sound, making his dog flaps on his mouth curl up and bare his line of glistening teeth, all cloaked in saliva. I held my chin up as his fist clenched into my shirt, making my feet lift from the ground.

"I didn't want the Maet sauce." His snarl made his floppy tongue spittle over my face; the stench was wet dog and something else.

"I'm sorry, sir," I shouldn't be handling this the way it was going, he was assaulting me, and my rage was getting worse. My nose flaring and muscles tensing like lightening striking the ground, my eyes darting here and there, my brain ticking a way to find solutions, object as a weapon, or just not thinking at all.

"You made a mistake, boy," The dog dropped me and turned, grabbed the hefty plate and shoved it into my hands. "Fix me another one, and be quick about it."

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave." I set the plate back down on his table, being in direct line of path as him. A few aliens and people were sneaking glances, catching on what was happening. "You have assaulted a member of staff, and that is not tolerated."

"You're treading on thin ice, boy." He said it like I disgusted him, and I didn't faze from his insulting words. "Now don't rile me up today, or it will not be pretty."

He sauntered up to me and held a huge paw to my chest, claws clipping at my shirt, and he used impressive force and pushed me back so hard I crashed into the side of the bay window.

I heard the low crack of glass, low but noticeable to the diners around us, and they gasped in shock and stared at me.

I wasn't as hurt, but the window had taken a battering just now. I moved away from it and turned to see the blinds had broken along with the window, and the regular settings failed and all everyone could really see was the sun pouring inside.

I stared at the dog; he was no wolf, too pathetic to even be acknowledged as an alien. "Well," I whispered to myself. "This is really not going to be pretty."

With that, I moved wicked fast. Running with speed and force as I leaped on the table edge, and before it tipped, used the momentum to jump and side kick Mr. Dog in the face. I watched him fall to the ground, wielding his snout, licking his lips. And more shocked, deep breaths were heard, and the low growl like thunder from the mutt.

I landed on me feet by his side, which was a bad idea. As soon as my body hit the ground, the dog swiped his back leg under mine, making me crash to the floor next to him. Before I used my arms to propel myself up, he skimmed over me and caught my face, spinning me on the floor.

The pain was bearable as he dragged me up and head butted me, shoved me on the table and held me down with his claw. The diners were screaming and running and ditching food on the floor, the sound of dishes breaking and shrieks were all in slow motion, as the mutt loomed over me, a bright light coming in from the window, and funnily enough, his face was still in shadow from his long dark hair. I heard a metallic sound, like a sword being drawn from a tight sheath. And I was right.

His arm drew high, his claws by his face, wielding a long and beautiful, well looked after sword, and the sun glinted off the blade, and I couldn't see well. But I did see the sword coming down...And just...

A piercing, blinding pain enveloped in my shoulder, the searing ache caused my back to arch whilst noticing I'm pinned to the table with the sword. But something is off; I can't feel the pressure of Mr. Dog. More girlish screams coming from others that I didn't really pay attention, too, I just reached for the blade that was through my whole shoulder.

I reached for the handle, but there was only blade, so wrapped my hand around the blade, and felt the sting as I tried to move it out of my shoulder. It was no use, it wasn't moving, and my hand was getting sliced, as well as my muscle in my shoulder.

Then the table tipped, and in this light, I couldn't make out who it was standing over my body. Then the features were shadowed and I seen my mother grab the handle, her face plastered with worry.

I winced as she began to move it slowly, the feel of the smooth edges of the sword slice more of my insides. I arched my back again, and I heard her voice crack. "What do I do, Jim?" She screeched, her voice shattering with fear, I could almost taste it.

"Fast!" I grunted, getting it out fast as it was painful to even breathe. "Pull it out, quick!" I opened my eyes a brief moment to see her eyes gleam with fresh tears, dripping from the curve of her cheekbones.

Out of impulse, she rived the sword that pinned me to the table out; I felt blood splatter onto my face and possibly up the wall. I screamed in pain, the soreness like electricity up and down the left side of my body.

I smelt my mum before she reached down and picked up my numb body, smelt like her good-day perfume, which is now cursed to terrible-day, and a little bit of sweat aligned with food. I felt her arms encircle me and carry me away as I carelessly fell asleep.

I sat in the bowl of water that nourished my skin and tail, the replenish feeling soaring my nerves and energy, which bubbled like the underwater volcanic tubes. This B.E.N sat opposite me, on the floor, his knees under him in an odd way, since they rotated under him. His eyes, a large, solid blue were connected to mine as we chatted, should I say?

After Jim called me 'thing', I had bowed my head and told him to leave, quietly, and B.E.N felt my anger, because he also agreed, and Jim left without a word, silently shutting the door behind him.

"I shouldn't have been so crude." I sat at the bottom of the bowl, rested my head in my hands, my stringy hair curtaining my face. "I should apologise-"

"No," B.E.N pointed out in his high voice. "Jim doesn't really care for apologies, he'll just dismiss is and still be mad or upset. It's Jimmy." The metal man shrugged with his metal thin shoulders that were also circular, which I guess is for movement.

"Is he always that..."I tried not to think of such a horrible word. "Mean?" I asked, flopping my hands back into the water, sloshing it around through my fingers.

"Jimmy is Jimmy," B.E.N chirped, and I could tell he thought highly of Jim. "He is a good boy, but he has a few short circuits!" He twirled his seaweed thin fingers in loops near his head, indicating Jim were crazy, I smiled at that, then felt my eyes narrow at B.E.N as he went deep into though. "But..." B.E.N bowed his head, his lower jaw opening and closing, thinking is he should say to me what he was thinking. "He hasn't always been this nice. Before, he really did have an anger problem. He's changed, dramatically." B.E.N then looked up at me, with a sad smile on his metal face. Even made of metal, he could give emotional expression perfectly. "He's much kinder than he was before."

"Oh," I said softly. I heard a hollow creak at the door but didn't dare look over, because I knew it was Jim moving away from the door. "Did he do something wrong?"

B.E.N looked up at me and towards the door, listened for a while and back at me. His eyes went a different shade of blue as he nestled closer to me. "I shouldn't say this," He backed up, and then came up close again. "Sarah told me-"

"Who's Sarah?"

"Jimmy's mother." That beautiful, strong woman by Jim's side, his mother, was called Sarah, it's appealed to her greatly, a powerful name. "She told me that when Jim was a little younger that his dad wasn't around much, too often," B.E.N sounded sad, a gooey, black liquid leaked from his circle blue eye. "Oh, look, getting teary just talking about it!" He wiped at his eye, which I realised was his tears! "Sarah was losing her will when Jim would get upset about his dad," I felt a sting in my eyes and a distant image of my mother flicker to mind. "And when Jim was 11, his father packed up his things and left them all alone, Sarah said that her husband had had enough of everything, and without telling his only son, just left one morning when Jim was sound asleep. She said she saw him from the window running to his dad, running and running, skidding and falling over the narrow path to reach his father. But it was too late, apparently when Jim finally made it, his dad took off." B.E.N wiped at his eyes a little more and bowed his head. "Sarah said he was never the same, since."

I took in a deep breath and felt myself crying, an ache in my chest and burn in my face and heart, a throb only relatively the same as to my mother's death. I sobbed a little until B.E.N kept talking again, and I listened more intently.

"He took a turn for the worse," B.E.N looked up at me. "He got kicked out of school, had a thing for stealing and just went rebel against the law." B.E.N made funny gestures along with his words, but my mind was still set on Jim's father. His dad was never there for him, his father just up and left? At least my mother didn't have a choice, Jim's dad did.

"What's school?" I had a feeling school was Education, which is what me and kids had at home.

"A form of education about math, English and more classes that are useful and can determine the child's future." B.E.N's sloppy state was gone, and with that, I heard a thunder of screams erupt below, I even felt the vibration of sound under me onto the bowl.

"What's that?" I asked, curious.

B.E.N looked scared, glanced at me and screamed, "Something is wrong, I'll be right back!" And with that, he was out of the door.

I looked around and felt useless and agitated with what could be happening, and for some reason, believed Jim was in some sort of trouble. With that in mind, I climbed out of the bowl and crawled like a monster out of the white room, and down the hall, where someone was running into another room and slamming the wooden door.

Stunned for a second that someone could've spotted me scared me just the slightest, but the fear for Jim was strangely greater. Along with more shrieking screams, I dragged myself, with the help of my tail, towards the top of the stairs, where the sound of more screams where deafening. Then I seen Sarah's beautiful face appear at the bottom, but she looked so distressed and fear worked every muscle in her face.

And she was carrying someone, and that someone was her son, Jim, and blood poured from his left shoulder. My mouth dropped open.


End file.
